Taking the Step out of step Parent

Month: March 2016

I am so excited that I signed up for the April A-to-Z Challenge! This is my very first challenge and I would be lying if I said I wasn’t a little nervous. I made my list about a month ago. I wasn’t sure what theme I was going to pick, but as I was jotting down ideas for each letter I started to see a theme form itself.

My theme will be: Our Blended Family.

I will be writing about all the different memories I have of our blended family and how I have personally dealt with the different obstacles that I over came. There are so many different situations I have been thrown in and how I came out on the other side, still baffles me. I can’t wait to share the memories I have from the past 6 years. I have grown in so many different ways, and I am proud of the woman I have become.

Thank you, thank you, thank you, Lindsay for the Liebster Award nomination! Lindsay is over at Home, Hugs, and Huskies! Go check her out and say hello. She is a home schooling mama of 2 munchkins and 2 huskies in Cape Town!

10 Questions I answered:

What do you think your best quality is?

I would have to go with my ability to make people laugh. I am actually a really funny person. If I see anyone is having a debbie-downer day, I will be there to help you crack a smile 🙂

2. What did you want to be when you were a child?

I wanted to be a professional soccer player and a teacher, at the same time.

3. What do you like about blogging?

I love the community and support everyone gives. I love being able to type out my feelings and emotions about topics that are important to me, and not feeling judged. I love being able to connect with other bloggers and read their stories.

4. What do you dislike about blogging?

How addicting it is! Haha. There are times I should be working on stuff for work or doing things around the house, but you will most likely catch me blogging in my favorite spot on the couch.

5. What inspires you to write?

My life experiences since I have become a stepmom! Every day it becomes easier and easier. That doesn’t mean I don’t hit speed bumps along the way like everyone else, but after almost 6 years, it isn’t so scary anymore.

6. What do you do to snap out of writer’s block?

I will pour myself a glass of wine, grab my notepad, and start jotting down memories I have had with my family. That usually sparks some good stories.

7. What is your favourite book? Why?

That’s a tough one because I love ALL books, and I love reading. If I had to pick, I would choose Jodi Picoult – Leaving Time. After reading it I had a greater appreciation for elephants, specifically elephants and their emotions.

8. Who was a hero in your life? Why?

I don’t have a specific hero, but I would say my whole family has been a hero to me in my time of needs. Each of them have saved me in their own way, in just the way I needed them at that time.

9. If money was no object, what would you be doing?

I would be on a permanent vacation, a permanent TROPICAL vacation. I would travel to Greece, Italy, Spain, Germany, France, Australia, Africa….EVERYWHERE…in luxury 🙂

10. If you were a dog, which breed would you be? Why?

What a great question! I actually took a buzzfeed quiz about this LOL just to see what kind of breed it would give me, and I completely agree! This is what it said: Husky! Gentle and dignified, you are a dog that prefers an equal partnership between you and your human. You are fiercely independent but will always come home to those you call family. Radically playful, you cannot help but run in the fields, jump in the water, and finding new friends. Your fierce eyes give you a character all your own, making you one of the most distinctive breeds out there! I do have some pretty awesome eyes too 😉

I really should be, but I’m taking a break right now. Catching my breath before our vacation begins.

I realized a few weeks ago that I was going to be on vacation at the beginning of the A-Z Challenege. I’m a procrastinator, like hard core, but I already wrote the first 3 posts and scheduled them for their proper days! I’ve been a busy bee this week with writing and making graphics, and the best part was, it was a lot of fun! I really can’t wait to share with all of you 🙂

As I was writing this week, the munchkins asked me what I was working on. I told them I was writing about being a stepmom, and what being a stepmom is like. Little Man said “I bet you help a lot of stepmoms, because you are a great one!” Way to melt my heart, Little Man. Then Little Miss asked if I would read them something I wrote. I hesitated at first, then read them my post about our upcoming vacation, and my letter A for the challenge. Little Man had tears at the end of me reading to them. He wrapped his arms around me and said, “I just love you so much. I love the nice things you said about us. It just makes my heart so happy.”

Wow. That was awesome. That was an amazing feeling. In that moment everything hit me. This is why I write. This is why I am a stepmom. I do this for THIS feeling right here. The feeling of TRUE appreciation and love.

Before we all start this A-Z Challenge, remember who you write for. Remember why you started this journey of blogging, and don’t let anything effect what YOU want to write about. I truly believe blogging with passion is the best way to blog! I can’t wait to read everyone’s alphabet and see where this journey takes us! Happy Friday, Everyone!

When I was 16 I use to go to the tanning salon every other day after school and before my soccer games. I have no idea why I would do it, but I did. Most likely it was because the other soccer girls were going too. Skip 12 years later and I can tell you that you won’t catch me at a tanning salon, like ever…or so I thought.

Since we are going on vacation next week, I was talking with some of my girlfriends about how I wish I didn’t have to work on a base tan for 5 days before I get color on vacation. Both C and L looked at me like I was crazy and said “Go to the tanning salon before you go, get a base tan there and you won’t have to worry about burning when you’re gone.” Easy fix in their eyes. I told them my worries and how I didn’t want to burn, and how I burn easily. “Just go for a few minutes” they said. So off to the tanning salon I went.

I walked in, told the very bronze skinned lady I was new, I was headed somewhere hot next week and wanted a base tan. I made it VERY clear that I burn easily. I think I mentioned that at LEASTfive times. She told me she had the perfect bed for me. I bought some sample lotion and headed to the room.

I was in the tanning bed for a total of 5 minutes. It is a 15 minute max bed. “5 minutes shouldn’t be bad at all.” the bronze skinned lady said. “You won’t burn at all.” she said. “These beds are great for fair skin people.” she said.

Well, she lied.

My whole back is fried. Burnt. Red. On fire.

So now I sit here, in my winter clothes because it’s still cold where I live….BURNT. The munchkins just don’t understand HOW I got burnt, or why I would do that to myself. I guess I’m wondering the same thing.

Looks like I learned my lesson, and I will leave the tanning beds to C and L. Hopefully this burn will turn into a tan LOL but I think that’s some extreme wishful thinking. Damn you tanning bed, damn you.

I really enjoyed looking for quotes! Here are a few I found for this week!

We are all a little bit of this, and that makes us who we are. Embrace your inner weirdness! Own in! It’s who you are, and who YOU are is beautiful 🙂

I feel even as a step parent, I forget to make myself a priority every once in awhile. Whatever your situation, you need to remember to make time for yourself. If that’s going to the gym early in the morning or stealing 30 minutes during nap time to paint your nails. Make some time for yourself. It’s healthy. It will not only help you, but everyone else in your life. I bet you will notice things will start to run smoother.

I found this link up on The StepMomster blog and I thought what a really neat thing to try on the weekends. To check out what it is all about head on over to Part-Time Monster!

If we were having coffee today….I would first let you know I need to get more french vanilla creamer, because it looks like hubby used the last of it. He’s lucky I love him as much as I do. Then I would be letting you know about the crazy list of things I have on my to do list this week. I have lots of things to get ready for our annual family vacation coming up. Grocery shopping, cleaning the house, getting the munchkins all set for school this week, pulling all the summer clothes out for all four of us, and strategically packing every item into one large bag and one small bag. Not to brag, but I’ve become a pro at this over the years. The best part is, I do NOT stress about any of this. I plan out my entire week around how I am going to get everything done in time. It’s actually kind of fun. I love staying busy and multi-tasking, so this is right up my alley. Plus, it makes the week go by faster. I mean come on, who doesn’t count down how many sleeps they have left until their tropical vacation?!

This past week was pretty exciting. I got to go out for St. Patrick’s Day for the first time in like…6 years LOL And by going out I mean, after work I put on some green with my girlfriends and we went up to the bar and had 3 green beers. Don’t get me wrong, it was a lot of fun to just chat and laugh with my friends. It’s also nice to wake up the day after a major drinking holiday and not feel like crap. The joys of adulting and getting older.

A fun thing my friends, hubby, and I started a few weeks ago was watching all the episodes of Game of Thrones before the new season starts in April. Every Wednesday after we are all off of work, we bring a bottle of wine, plop in our favorite spots at my girlfriend C’s house and re watch the episodes. It is one of my favorite times of the week. By the end of the night we are usually crying from laughing so hard. Everyone needs a night like that once in awhile, I’m glad I get mine once a week.

Well that’s all I have for coffee today, maybe I will have more next week when I get my refill on french vanilla creamer 😉

I cannot wait for Spring Break vacation coming up! I love taking long car rides. I especially love long car rides with my hubby and two munchkins.

To recap for everyone and new followers, I am a 28 year old wife and stepmom. I have been a stepmom for almost 6 years and have been apart of the munchkins lives since they were 18 months and 2 years old. We have the munchkins half of the week and the other half they are with their mom and step dad.
Anyways back to vacation!

It takes us about two days to get to our tropical destination. We make random and spontaneous stops on our way which are my favorite parts of the trip. We might hike through the mountains or climb to the highest point where you can see 5 states from one view point. Whatever it is, everyone has a blast.

Traveling with younger children usually freaks most people out, but I honestly believe it’s all about your attitude. About a month before we leave I usually start to talk about our upcoming vacation. This will usually spark the kids interest and we will talk about things we would like to do, things they enjoyed last time or places we would like to stop this trip. Since they’ve got older, their ideas are becoming pretty legit ideas — haha. They want to do kayaking in salt water, day cruise to an island for lunch, and lots and lots of fishing! I’m getting so excited just typing this!

No matter what we do, I love the time the four of us get to spend together. 10 whole days of fun, family, and love. Every year this trip brings us closer together. We have our ups and downs, but at the end of the trip all we remember are the ups, and those are the memories we each will treasure forever.